The SONA, which is often broadcast, serves as a means to inform the nation about its present economic, political, and social condition, and is a vehicle for the President to summarise the accomplishments and plans of his/her programme for government both for a particular year and until the end of their term of office.

The address is usually delivered at around 16:00 PST (GMT+8). Before the appointed time, legislators enter the Plenary Hall, with Congresswomen and consorts of Congressmen in recent years sporting traditionally-inspired couture that in some cases expresses their legislative agenda or ideological leanings.

The President meanwhile arrives at the Batasang Pambansa Complex some minutes before the beginning of the joint session, and enters the main building through a back portal. The President is then welcomed with military honours, and greeted by the House Speaker, Senate President and the welcoming committee, before proceeding to the Presidential Legislate Liaison Office.

The President then enters the Plenary Hall as the Presidential Anthem is played, and as the Secretary General introduces him, approaches the rostrum and is seated. The Senate President and the House Speaker then convene the joint session, and the House of Representatives Choir leads the assembly, now standing, in singing the Lupang Hinirang the national anthem. Representatives of various religious groups then lead the people an ecumenical prayer.

The Speaker then introduces the President thus:

"Ladies and gentlemen, honourable members of the Congress of the Philippines, His/Her Excellency (name), the President of the Republic of the Philippines."

The Address, which can last anywhere from one hour to several, is broadcast on television, radio, and online by both state agencies such as Radio Television Malacañang alongside private media organisations.

The Malolos Constitution of 1899 provided for the President to preside over the opening of Congress, as well as convey his messages to the legislature through a secretary. When Emilio Aguinaldo addressed the Malolos Congress in Spanish on September 15, 1898, he simply congratulated the formation of the first representative body of the Philippines and Asia. This is not considered a State of the Nation Address because the Constitution at the time did not explicitly provide for one.

When the Commonwealth of the Philippines was created and the 1935 Constitution enacted, it provided for an annual report of the President of the Philippines to Congress:

"The President shall from time to time give to the Congress information on the state of the Nation, and recommend to its consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient."[1]

The first formal State of the Nation Address was delivered by President Manuel L. Quezon on June 16, 1936 at the Legislative Building in the City of Manila, now known as Old Congress Building.[1] The dates of the SONA were fixed on June 16 of every year at the start of opening sessions of Congress, by virtue of Commonwealth Act No. 17. However, CA 49 changed the date of the opening of Congress to October 16.

In 1937, October 16 fell on a Saturday, and the opening of Congress was moved to 18th, when Quezon gave the second State of the Nation Address. The opening date of Congress was again changed that year to the fourth Monday of every year. President Manuel L. Quezon delivered his final State of the Nation Address on January 31, 1941, prior to the onset of World War II.

With the 1945 defeat of the Japanese Empire and the re-establishment of the Commonwealth Government in the Philippines, the Congress of the Philippines, now bicameral, convened for the first time since their election in 1941 on June 9, 1945. During this special session, President Sergio Osmeña addressed lawmakers at their provisional quarters along Lepanto Street in Manila, and gave a comprehensive report on the work carried out by the Commonwealth Government during its three-year as a government-in-exile in Washington, D.C. Furthermore, he described the conditions prevailing in the Philippines during the period of enemy occupation and an acknowledgment of the invaluable assistance rendered by the guerrillas to American forces in the liberation of the Philippines.

The last SONA of the Commonwealth was delivered by President Manuel A. Roxas on June 3, 1946. President Roxas would later deliver the first SONA of the Third Philippine Republic in front of the First Congress on January 27, 1947.

Beginning in 1949, SONAs were delivered at the rebuilt Legislative Building. Only once did a President not appear personally before Congress: on January 23, 1950, President Elpidio R. Quirino, who was recuperating at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, the United States, delivered his SONA to a joint session of Congress via RCS. The Address was picked up by a local radio network at 10:00 PST (GMT+8), in time for the opening of the regular congressional session.

President Marcos began giving the SONA at the Batasang Pambansa Complex on June 12, 1978 during the opening session of the Interim Batasang Pambansa. From 1979 onwards, the SONA was delivered on the fourth Monday of July, following the provisions in the 1973 Constitution and the superseding 1987 Constitution. The only exceptions to this were in 1983, when the SONA was delivered on January 17 (the anniversary of the 1973 Constitution's ratification and the second anniversary of the lifting of Martial Law), and in 1986 when President Corazón C. Aquino did not deliver any SONA following the People Power Revolution.

With the re-establishment of Congress in 1987, President Aquino delivered her SONA at the Session Hall of the Batasang Pambansa. All succeeding Presidents have since delivered their Addresses in the same venue.

Recent addresses have been the subject of criticism by various sectors for being too ostentatious and flashy, with politicians and media personalities treating the event as a red carpet fashion show. Senator Miriam Santiago blasts the organizers and calls the event a "thoughtless extravagance" where "peacocks spread their tails and turn around and around, as coached by media in a feeding frenzy."[2]